The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will reportedly announce the Indian squad for the upcoming white-ball series in Sri Lanka on Wednesday, July 17. Newly-appointed head coach Gautam Gambhir is likely to pick his former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) teammate as the captain of the Indian T20I team.
Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from T20Is after leading the national cricket team to a trophy during the 2024 T20 World Cup in West Indies and the USA. Hardik Pandya served as Rohit’s deputy in the recently concluded tournament. Pandya is expected to succeed Rohit as the captain of the Indian T20I team.
The captaincy of the Indian T20I team has become a two-way race between Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav. According to the latest reports, Gautam Gambhir is aiming to form a core squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup and find a suitable captain for the ICC tournament in India and Sri Lanka.
Hardik Pandya unlikely to lead Indian T20I team in Sri Lanka
According to ESPNcricinfo, Suryakumar Yadav is expected to be named as the T20I captain for the three-match series against Sri Lanka. Gautam Gambhir and the selection committee will take the final decision regarding the captaincy. Hardik Pandya’s fitness and workload management are the reasons behind the decision.
“Although Hardik was Rohit’s deputy in the T20 World Cup and is a more experienced captain (he has led India in three ODIs and 16 T20Is, as well as leading Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians in the IPL), it is understood that concerns over fitness and workload management may have tipped the scales against him,” an ESPNcricinfo report said.
Hardik Pandya injured his ankle during the home ODI World Cup last year and was out of action until IPL 2024. He had a lackluster IPL season with the Mumbai Indians (MI). However, Pandya turned his fortunes around in the T20 World Cup. Hardik has played in just 46 of India’s 79 T20Is since the start of 2022.
On the other hand, Suryakumar Yadav has previous experience as India captain in T20Is. He led the Indian team to a 4-1 series win against Australia and a 1-1 series draw in South Africa. He is a key player in India’s T20I line-up, scoring 2340 runs in 65 innings at a strike rate of 167.74, including four hundreds and 19 fifties.
The T20I series in Sri Lanka will be the first assignment for Gautam Gambhir, who replaced Rahul Dravid. This series is considered a starting point for the upcoming T20 World Cup. VVS Laxman recently coached the young Indian team, led by Shubman Gill, to a 4-1 series win in Zimbabwe.
The first T20I between India and Sri Lanka will be played at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on Saturday, July 27. The remaining two matches will be played at the same venue on July 28 and 30 respectively.
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